Department for Communities and Local Government

Development Plans

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Neighbourhood Development Plans have been subject to community referendums, and of these, how many were approved, what locations they cover, and which were instigated by (1) parish councils and (2) neighbourhood forums.

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many full draft Neighbourhood Development Plans have reached the consultation stage, and what locations those plans cover.

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many communities have taken the first formal steps towards the creation of a Neighbourhood Development Plan but have not yet reached the consultation stage, and what locations those plans cover.

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Neighbourhood Development Orders have been approved, what locations those plans cover, and what are the purposes of each.

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether parish councils can make a Neighbourhood Development Plan jointly for all or part of their areas, and if so, under what provision.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Whilst information is not collected centrally, our informal monitoring tells us that as of the end of May 2015: referendums have been held on the making of 67 neighbourhood plans. In each case the majority of those who voted were in favour of the neighbourhood plan being made (on average 89% of those voting voted in favour). 62 of the neighbourhood plans were instigated by a parish council and five by designated neighbourhood forums.   in total, 274 communities have carried out, or are currently carrying out, pre-submission consultation and publicity on a neighbourhood plan proposal.   1,221 communities across England have applied for a neighbourhood area to be designated (the first formal step in the process) but have not yet undertaken pre-submission consultation and publicity on a neighbourhood plan proposal.   one Neighbourhood Development Order (Cockermouth) and three Community Right to Build Orders (Ferring) have been made (brought into force). A Neighbourhood Development Order grants planning permission for specific development or a class of development in a specified neighbourhood area (a community right to build order is a type of neighbourhood development order).   A local planning authority must publish a map setting out the areas that are for the time being designated as neighbourhood areas. Details of the locations of neighbourhood planning across England, by local authority, can be found in the attached list. An interactive map with details of the referendums can be found at: https://www.thinglink.com/scene/647092767838699520   A single parish council (as a relevant body) can apply for a multi-parished neighbourhood area to be designated as long as that multi-parished area includes all or part of that parish council’s administrative area. When the parish council begins to develop a neighbourhood plan or an Order (as a qualifying body) it needs to secure the consent of the other parish councils to undertake neighbourhood planning activities. The relevant provision is set out in section 61F of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as applied to neighbourhood plans by section 38C of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. 



150610 Neighbourhood planing locations in England
(Word Document, 31.64 KB)

Regional Planning and Development: North of England

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they define "Northern powerhouse", as used in the Gracious Speech.

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they define the North of England, as referred to in the term "Northern powerhouse" used in the Gracious Speech.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Northern Powerhouse is a long term plan to enable the north to reach its potential as a driving force in the UK economy, closing the gap between north and south. It will reinforce the links between our northern cities to make them collectively stronger, providing them with modern transport connections, supporting science, innovation, universities and creative clusters and by giving them the local power and control needed to support growth. The Government will also empower the towns and counties of the north to build on the economic strengths outside cities.

Right to Buy Scheme

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultations they have had with the voluntary sector about extending the right-to-buy to housing association tenants; and what steps they plan to take to respond to any consultation before bringing forward a new housing bill.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Ministers and senior officials are engaging with key stakeholders, as they do on a continuous basis, in relation to key policy issues.

Derelict Land

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to provide the necessary funding to ensure that brownfield land released by government departments for housing purposes can be developed in locations where its development would not otherwise be viable.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Government intends to create a £1 billion fund to unlock homes on brownfield land for additional housing, and ensure that brownfield land is used as much as possible for new development.   We are clear that brownfield land that is suitable for housing has a vital role to play in meeting the need for new homes, and ensuring that the Green Belt is protected. The Government is committed to releasing surplus public sector land with capacity for up to 150,000 homes by 2020.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Philip Blackwood

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assistance they are providing Philip Blackwood, who is imprisoned in Burma.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The New Zealand Embassy in Burma is leading on providing consular assistance to Mr Blackwood as he travelled to Burma on his New Zealand passport. They have been in contact with his family who are resident in New Zealand.Our Embassy in Rangoon has provided advice and support to the New Zealand Embassy on Mr Blackwood’s case and we will continue to discuss with them what further assistance we can provide. We have raised the case with the Burmese authorities and made them aware of our interest in Mr Blackwood’s welfare.

North Korea: Nuclear Weapons

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the Six Party Talks on North Korea will resume, and of the likelihood of progress on the issue of nuclear weapons controls in the light of the five previous United Nations Security Council Resolutions and two Agreed Frameworks.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), discussed this with the Assistant Secretary in Washington on 2 June. An immediate resumption of Six Party Talks appears unlikely. While the US remain open to the prospect of resuming dialogue, they have also called for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to demonstrate good faith before returning to talks. Thus far, the DPRK has rejected all proposals for talks on these terms. We remain extremely concerned by the DPRK’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes and continue to urge the DPRK to: comply with its obligations under relevant UN Security Council Resolutions; refrain from any further provocations; abide by its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty; and permit full access by the International Atomic Energy Agency. We urge the rigorous implementation of sanctions by the international community to limit the DPRK’s ability to advance its programmes.

Kuwait: Nationality

Lord Avebury: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have yet received confirmation that the amendment submitted to the Kuwait National Assembly allowing Kuwaiti women to sponsor their husbands and children to acquire Kuwaiti nationality provided they have been married for 10 years has been ratified.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We have had no confirmation that the Kuwaiti Parliament has approved any change to the Nationality Law which would confer upon women the right to pass nationality to their children. Our Ambassador and other senior officials frequently raise the issue of nationality and equal rights with the relevant Kuwaiti authorities, and the UK noted concerns about gender equality during Kuwait’s Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in January.

Belize: Homosexuality

Lord Black of Brentwood: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Belize about the treatment of homosexual men and women in that country.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We regularly raise the treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people with the Government of Belize. On 4 February 2015, our High Commissioner in Belmopan met with the Belizean Foreign Minister, the Honourable Wilfred Elrington, to discuss human rights and the treatment of homosexual men and women. The UK also raised LGBTI rights at Belize’s last Universal Periodic Review at the UN in 2013.

Belize: HIV Infection

Lord Black of Brentwood: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the possible link between the spread of HIV/AIDS in Belize and the criminalisation of homosexuality in that country.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Our focus in Belize has been on working to uphold the rights and freedoms of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people in all circumstances. More generally, we believe that access to treatment for human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) should be without discrimination, and that discriminatory laws that impede access to treatment should be addressed. This is true in Belize as elsewhere.

Belize: Homosexuality

Lord Black of Brentwood: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when a government minister last visited Belize, and whether they discussed the treatment of homosexuals with representatives of the government of Belize during that visit.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), visited Belize in November 2012; and the former Parliamentary Under Secretary of State and Minister for International Security Strategy at the Ministry of Defence, my hon. Friend the Member for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison), visited Belize in March 2013. Our High Commissioner in Belmopan regularly raises human rights and the treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people with representatives of the Belizean government.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Climate Change

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to increase the exports and overseas licensing of technology designed to reduce the impact of climate change.

Lord Maude of Horsham: The Government actively supports British companies to export products and services that reduce the impact of climate change. For example, UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) helps UK companies to win export business in the offshore wind, other renewables and nuclear sectors. This approach is consistent with the Government’s overall climate change policy.

Department for International Development

Burma: Refugees

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to encourage the reversal of rations cuts for refugees from Burma in camps on the border between Thailand and Burma; and what is their current estimate of the number of men, women and children in those camps.

Baroness Verma: The Department for International Development engages regularly with other OECD donors on assistance to the refugees from Burma in camps on the border between Thailand and Burma, and convened a donor conference with The Border Consortium (TBC) in April 2015, partly with the aim of encouraging other donors to maintain appropriate support to TBC. DFID approved a renewed project for conflict affected people from October 2012 to November 2015, totalling over £27million. This project includes our support to the refugees for food, shelter and other relief items. In March 2015 DFID agreed a £6.67m additional cost extension for the project to January 2017.

Department for Education

Forced Marriage and Honour Based Violence: Education

Baroness Cox: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to encourage schools to raise awareness of the risk of forced marriage and honour-based abuse, and of the availability of preventive measures.

Lord Nash: The government is committed to tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG). We are helping to end violence at home and abroad by allowing women to check their partner’s criminal history, introducing domestic violence protection orders, criminalising forced marriage and introducing a new offence of domestic abuse. We will strengthen victims’ rights further, with a new Victims’ Law that will enshrine key rights for victims. The previous government ring-fenced £40 million to VAWG services - £10 million per year, specifically for refuges. The government has committed to continuing that funding up to April 2016.   Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) statutory guidance, issued by the Department for Education, outlines to schools and colleges their roles and responsibilities with regard to safeguarding their pupils. The department makes it clear that schools and colleges play a significant role in early identification of abuse and preventing concerns from escalating.   KCSIE signposts school staff to specific forced marriage information and guidelines produced by the Forced Marriage Unit (FMU). This information provides an overview of forced marriage, together with FMU contact details for further information and advice.   KCSIE also signposts schools to further information on faith abuse: the ‘National action plan to tackle child abuse linked to faith or belief’. This action plan serves to help raise awareness of the issue of child abuse linked to faith or belief, including honour based violence and forced marriage. The action plan encourages practical steps to be taken to prevent such abuse.   KCSIE recognises that forced marriage and honour based violence are safeguarding concerns. The guidance makes clear that any concerns identified by staff should be raised and discussed with the school’s designated safeguarding lead and escalated to children’s social care as appropriate.   Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education, and Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) are curriculum subjects that may be used to raise pupil awareness of forced marriage and honour-based abuse. To support teaching in these areas, the PSHE Association has produced guidance for teaching about consent, covering the importance of building healthy relationships, as well as giving young people the confidence and knowledge about staying safe and respecting others. It also supports the government’s ‘This is Abuse’ campaign, which helps educate young people about damaging behaviours within relationships.

Children's Centres

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to prevent any further closures of Sure Start Children’s Centres.

Lord Nash: It is up to local authorities to decide how to organise and commission services from children’s centres in their areas. They are best placed to understand local needs and the different ways they can be supported locally. Local authorities must demonstrate that they have devised ways to ensure that services continue; what matters is the quality and impact of services, and how local needs are being supported. We are clear in statutory guidance that there is a presumption against closure, and local authorities have a duty to consult where changes are planned to local children’s centre provision.

Children's Centres

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role Sure Start Children’s Centres will play in the implementation of their policy to double free childcare for working parents of three and four year-olds.

Lord Nash: We expect to consult on the extended entitlement for three- and four-year-old children of working parents; and we will consider the role that Sure Start Children’s Centres might play. Further details will be announced in due course.

Ministry of Justice

Criminal Proceedings: Legal Costs

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of defendants in criminal cases who were required to pay some or all of their own legal costs and who have been acquitted, or whose charges have been withdrawn, have in the last twelve months (1) had their full legal costs reimbursed, or (2) have been reimbursed their costs at the equivalent of legal aid rates.

Lord Faulks: Defendants who have been granted legal aid, but had to make a contribution to their legal aid costs, and are then acquitted or whose charges have been withdrawn, are likely to have all contributions reimbursed, though the trial court does have discretion to decide otherwise in appropriate circumstances.Defendants in the Magistrates’ Court who have not been granted legal aid, and defendants in the Crown Court who have applied and had their application refused on financial grounds, who are then acquitted or whose charges have been withdrawn, can obtain a defendants costs order and have their costs determined under sections 16 and 16A of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 and Part III of the Costs in Criminal Cases (General) Regulations 1986.As was the case under the previous administration, the Legal Aid Agency (LAA) does not record the number of people whose legal costs are reimbursed.

G4S: Government Contracts

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the February 2015 Ofsted Report on Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre and the dismissal of six of its staff for misconduct, what steps they are taking to review the performance of G4S in providing custodial services, and whether G4S will be allowed to tender for new or renewed contracts.

Lord Faulks: The safety and welfare of young people in custody is vital and the Ministry of Justice takes the issues raised in the recent Rainsbrook inspection report extremely seriously. We have taken immediate action to make sure these are being addressed by the operator. The leadership at Rainsbrook has been replaced and the Youth Justice Board are closely monitoring the implementation of an action plan.  A further unannounced inspection will take place in the Autumn. If G4S fail to resolve the issues raised, further contractual remedies are available, including contract termination.  Contracts for the Medway and Rainsbrook Secure Training Centres are currently being retendered. It would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.

Employment Tribunals Service: Fees and Charges

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effect of the increase in employment tribunal fees on the number of claims brought.

Lord Faulks: Following a public consultation, fees were introduced in Employment Tribunals to reduce the burden on the taxpayer of paying for Employment Tribunals and to encourage parties to seek alternative ways of resolving their disputes. The Government is anxious to divert people away from potentially acrimonious hearings where possible through a new early conciliation scheme which has already been used by over 60,000 people in its first nine months. There are fee waivers available for those who can not afford to pay. The Government is currently considering the options for a review of Employment Tribunal fees. A further announcement will be made soon.

Criminal Proceedings: Fees and Charges

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why fees in criminal proceedings are, on average, higher when a defendant pleads not guilty.

Lord Faulks: Section 54 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 specifies the level of criminal courts charges and requires that they do not exceed the costs reasonably attributable to a case of its class. In determining charge levels, the Coalition Government considered the time and resource spent on particular types of proceedings, as well as fixed overhead costs. The charge levels for not-guilty plea proceedings have been set below cost.The Government keeps charge levels under review.

Detainees: Death

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to ensure that the families of individuals who have died in custody or detention have access to justice.

Lord Faulks: There must be a coroners’ inquest into any death in state detention, including deaths from natural causes. The inquest must be held with a jury where the death is not from natural causes. The inquest must ascertain how, when and where the person died.In addition, all deaths in custody are subject to a police investigation and an investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. Once the inquest has been concluded, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman’s office publishes a detailed ‘Fatal Incident Report’ on the death which includes recommendations to prevent further deaths.

Ministry of Defence

War Pensions

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether war pensions are part of the welfare budget; and if not, in which departmental budget they lie.

Earl Howe: War Pensions sat within the Ministry of Defence's Annual Managed Expenditure budget since June 2001, when the War Pensions Agency transferred to the Ministry of Defence. As announced in the 2014 Budget, the Government will move War Pensions out of Annual Managed Expenditure for future years.

War Pensions

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether war pensions were included in the calculation of spending on defence in the years 2011–14.

Earl Howe: War Pensions were not included in our Defence Spending submissions to NATO between 2011 and 2014.

Defence: Expenditure

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether spending on current operations is included in the calculation of the percentage of gross domestic product spent on defence; and if so, when it was first included in that calculation.

Earl Howe: Spending on operations is included in the calculation of the percentage of gross domestic product spent on defence and has been included in our Defence Spending submissions to NATO since at least 2009.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits

Lord Touhig: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Personal Independence Payments and Employment Support Allowance will be exempted from the proposed new benefit cap.

Lord Freud: Details of the policy will be announced in due course.

Social Security Benefits

Lord Touhig: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to introduce flexibility into the benefit cap regime to take account of family size and regional housing costs.

Lord Freud: Details of the policy will be announced in due course.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Agriculture: Subsidies

Lord Willoughby de Broke: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Basic Payment Scheme was not rolled out online as originally announced: what was the additional cost to the taxpayer of returning to paper-based British Payment Scheme applications; what assessment they have made of the reasons for the failure of the online roll-out; and in the light of the date for final submissions of completed Basic Payment Scheme forms being extended from 15 May to 15 June, whether there will be any delay in making payments to farmers by the end of 2015.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: While the core of the new online Rural Payments system is working well, there have been performance problems around the interface between the customer portal and the back end of the system. That one area was not consistently stable and it was having a negative effect on the rest of the service.   As a result, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) switched the approach to delivery of the Basic Payment Scheme in 2015 to one where farmers and their agents use existing forms to complete their claims by the extended deadline.   Over the longer term we will continue to work on a user-friendly web interface - but for this claim year the priority is making sure farm businesses get the help and support they need to get their claims in on time.   We are currently assessing the additional costs from the revised approach.   The RPA will be making full payments as early as possible in the payments window, which opens in December.

Home Office

Asylum: Finance

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, with regard to the number of days elapsing between the end of financial support from the UK Border Agency for asylum seekers, and the first receipt of other forms of state financial support from the Department for Work and Pensions, across all cases between 1 January and 31 December 2014, how many cases there were in which the number of days was greater than zero; and what were the figures for (1) the minimum and maximum, (2) the mean and median, (3) the first and third, and (4) the fifth and 95th percentiles.

Lord Bates: We do not hold information or record data on asylum claimants who have ceased to receive support from the Home Office and gone on to other housing support. The UK Border Agency was abolished in March 2013 and the agency was split into two new organisations: UK Visas and Immigration and Immigration Enforcement.

Asylum: Housing

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, with regard to the number of days elapsing between the end of housing support from the UK Border Agency, or their contractors, for asylum seekers, and the first receipt of other forms of state housing support from the Department for Work and Pensions, across all cases between 1 January and 31 December 2014, how many cases there were in which the number of days was greater than zero; and what were the figures for (1) the minimum and maximum, (2) the mean and median, (3) the first and third, and (4) the fifth and 95th percentiles.

Lord Bates: We are unable to provide the information requested by the Rt Honourable Lady as we do not hold information or record data on asylum claimants who have ceased to receive support from the Home Office and gone on to other housing support. The UK Border Agency was abolished in March 2013 and the agency was split into two new organisations: UK Visas and Immigration and Immigration Enforcement.

Refugees: Syria

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest estimate of how many Syrian refugees are displaced from their homes, both internally and abroad; and how many have been resettled in the United Kingdom since the establishment of the Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme for Syrian nationals.

Lord Bates: As of 30 March 2015, 187 people were relocated to the UK under the Vulnerable Persons Relocation scheme for Syrian nationals. This is the latest publicly available figure as numbers are released as part of the Home Office statistics each quarter.The Department for International Development hold information on estimates on the number of Syrians displaced internally and abroad.

Graduates: Visas

The Earl of Kinnoull: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Graduate Entrepreneur visas were granted in each of the last two years; and what are those results broken down by the higher education institutions sponsoring the visas.

Lord Bates: The information in the table below relates to all Tier 1 Graduate Entrepreneur visas granted.YearEntry Clearance ApplicationsIn Country Applications2013132152014175385201544160To obtain the breakdown of the Higher Education Institutions sponsoring the visas would incur disproportionate cost.

Forced Marriage

Baroness Cox: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that girls are not taken abroad for the purposes of forced marriage.

Baroness Cox: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures are in place to ensure that girls at risk of being taken abroad for the purpose of forced marriage are identified and assessed by professionals.

Lord Bates: The UK is a world leader in tackling forced marriage, and the Government is committed to ensuring that girls are not taken abroad for the purposes of forced marriage. That is why, during the previous Parliament, the Home Secretary made forced marriage a criminal offence, which included taking extra-territorial jurisdiction for forced marriage offences.We recognise that strengthening the law is only part of the solution. The Government’s Forced Marriage Unit is leading efforts to combat this unacceptable activity both at home and abroad. Measures include providing support and advice to professionals and victims through a public helpline, with the Unit assisting in 1,267 cases in 2014. We are providing further direct support to professionals, including schools and the Crown Prosecution Service, through an extensive outreach and training programme and the publication of statutory multi-agency guidance in July 2014.

Passports: Children

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the written answer by Lord Bates on 2 March (HL5145), why draft revised guidance on obtaining passports for donor-conceived children has not yet been circulated; and when it will be.

Lord Bates: Drafting of the guidance will be completed shortly and consultation with interested parties will commence at the end of June 2015.

Immigrants: Children

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to reimburse local authorities for the costs falling to them in caring for children from families with no recourse to public funds as they attempt to regulate their immigration status, in the light of the report by the Centre on Migration, Policy and Society Safeguarding Children From Destitution; and if not, why not.

Lord Bates: We work closely with local authorities to ensure that immigration decisions in cases receiving local authority support are made as quickly as possible. The No Recourse to Public Funds Connect database provides an expedited route into the Home Office for local authorities on individual cases, so that these can be dealt with as quickly as possible. Where migrants granted leave to remain on family grounds show that they are destitute or that there are exceptional circumstances, they are given recourse to public funds.

UK Border Force

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assets Border Force uses at present to maintain surveillance of United Kingdom territorial seas and adjacent waters; and what plans they have, if any, to change this in the light of the deployment of two Border Force cutters in the Mediterranean.

Lord Bates: We do not comment on specific operational matters for reasons of national security. A variety of assets ensure the integrity of UK waters, and we continue to ensure that Border Force is able to make use of cutting-edge technology and good intelligence in its important work.

Wales Office

Elections: Wales

Lord Wigley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the leaders of the political parties in Wales regarding the implications of holding the referendum on the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union on the same day as the elections to the National Assembly for Wales.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Wales has regular discussions with the First Minister and leaders of the other main parties in Wales on a wide range of issues relating to Wales. The Prime Minister has been clear that we will hold an in-out referendum by the end of 2017 and the EU Referendum Bill is consistent with this.

HM Treasury

Loans: Republic of Ireland

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much is outstanding of the loans provided to the government of the Republic of Ireland following the financial crisis of 2007 to 2008; and what are the arrangements and dates for repayment.

Lord O'Neill of Gatley: I refer the noble Lord to the most recent statutory report which the Treasury provided to Parliament as required by Section 2 of the Loans to Ireland Act 2010. The last report was published on the 13 October 2014 and is available online along with all previous reports submitted[1].   This report shows the outstanding loan principle is £3,226,960,000, with repayments due in tranches from 15 April 2019, until the 26 March 2021.   Ireland continues to make interest payments. Since the publication of this report, the UK has received a further interest payment from Ireland, on the 15 December 2014, of £41,998,674.42.   The next report, covering the reporting period which finished on the 31 March 2015, will be provided as soon as reasonably possible.  [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/bilateral-loan-to-ireland  



Report on Ireland Loans 
(PDF Document, 177.83 KB)

Cabinet Office

Muslims

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the percentages of the Muslim populations in (1) Birmingham, (2) Blackburn, (3) Bradford, (4) Leicester, (5) Luton, (6) Manchester, (7) Slough and (8) the London Boroughs of (a) Newham and (b) Tower Hamlets; what was the percentage growth of those Muslim populations between 2004 and 2014; what percentages are under the age of 15; how these compare with the non-Muslim populations; and what were the comparative birthrates between the Muslim and non-Muslim populations in those areas.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UK Statistics Reply 
(PDF Document, 111.3 KB)




Tables of Population Figures 
(Excel SpreadSheet, 13.05 KB)

Government Departments: Muslims

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether employment in government departments has been given to Muslims with links to Islamic extremist groups.

Lord Bridges of Headley: All Civil Servants are subject to recruitment checks (including of unspent criminal records) and the provisions of the Civil Service Code. Line managers report concerns about staff, including for example, expressions of support for extremist views, actions or incidents.Civil Servants in sensitive roles are subject to national security vetting. Information is checked against records held by the Security Service and the police.